Austrian advancement

From European Voice's Entre-Nous column

9/29/10, 9:07 PM CET

Updated 4/23/14, 9:05 PM CET

Bagging a top job in the EEAS.

Werner Faymann, Austria’s chancellor, is a paid-up member of the Catherine Ashton fan-club. He was one of a triumvirate from the Party of European Socialists that came up with Ashton as a candidate for the post of EU foreign policy chief. And, once she was appointed, he invited her to attend Vienna’s New Year’s Ball.

The attentiveness appears to have paid off. Earlier this month, Ashton named Hans Dietmar Schweisgut, Austria’s permanent representative to the EU for the last three years, to be the EU’s ambassador to Japan. So Austria bagged one of the two most important jobs going.

The Austrians already have a hold on the delegation, because Stefan Huber, the Commission’s number two in Tokyo, who has been acting head since Hugh Richardson left in May, is one of theirs.

Schweisgut will not start until 1 January at the earliest, but the speculation has begun about who might fill the vacancy he will leave in the Austrian permanent representation in Brussels.

Austria’s socialists, although the senior partner in the country’s grand coalition with the centre-right, are struggling to find one of their own to follow Schweisgut. Judith Gebetsroithner, a former deputy permanent representative to the EU, wants to stay in the office of Faymann in Vienna, and Rene Pollitzer remains chief of staff of President Heinz Fischer.

Some grumbling socialists believe that possible candidates have been put off by Faymann’s lack of interest in the EU. Perish the thought.